Violence And Its Effects On The United States Essay

In November of 1860, the presidential election was one of the most momentous in the history of the United States. The land was split between North and the South and was smoldering for almost a decade. The candidates for the presidential election of 1860 were Abraham Lincoln, Republican, John Breckinridge, Southern Democrat, John Bell, Constitutional Union, and Stephen Douglas, Northern Democratic. Abraham Lincoln was against the increase of slavery into the new territories. Lincoln did not receive one vote from the south, but he did win over 50% of the Electoral College votes so Lincoln won the presidency to become the 16th President of the United States. Abraham Lincoln was known as one of America’s greatest heroes because of his inconceivable impact on our nation and his unique appeal. Lincoln was a captain in the military and a lawyer all before becoming the 16th President of the United States. Lincoln was one of two U.S. presidents who was assassinated while in office. Lincoln was also the president during the roughest part of American history, the Civil War. Lincoln was heavily in favor of abolishing slavery and so most of the citizens in the northern states of the U.S... On the other hand, the south had large plantations and favored slavery because the slaves worked for free and made plantation owners and other farmers a staggering amount of profit. The slaves were not treated as human beings; therefore, the slaves were mistreated. Slave owners often beat their slaves

School shootings, gang violence, drive by shootings, murder, and thousands of acts of violence are committed every day. Members of our society criticize their own people for this violence while they continue to sit back and do nothing about it. These acts of violence have many contributing factors. Violence in our country today is escalating because we don't control the distribution of the guns sold. There are not enough restrictions on guns sold legally. The illegal purchase of guns through the black market is out of control. There is not enough education on the usage and storage of guns.

A leading example of the struggles of slavery in the western states was the struggle over slavery in Kansas. Document F depicts a political cartoon basically stating that Stephen Douglas, Franklin Pierce, and James Buchanan all attempted intentionally or unintentionally to spread slavery to the West. Stephen Douglas proposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act in which the Midwest Nebraska territory would be divided into two states Kansas and Nebraska and the issue of slavery would be determined by in state vote known as "popular sovereignty". Franklin Pierce aided with the signing of the bill. The results upon this bill was harsh fighting between pro-slavery supporters and non-slavery supporters in Kansas over this issue. It also led to the non-reelection of Pierce and the end to the Whig party, along with the introduction of the sectional Republican party, who opposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act. An attempt at forcing slavery into

closer to the Civil War. Passed in 1854 as a compromise bill, the KansasNebraska Act established popular sovereignty in the two territories of Kansas and Nebraska, sparking a fight over

Violence in America America is a violent nation. Many people think that America is full of freedom and democracy. Do these people actually see what happens in America? Do they see the violence in schools, the crime in our society? Most likely, no, these people have loosely seen our society, the violence and the frauds that plague America's history as well as the present.

Thesis: The Kansas-Nebraska Act negatively affected North and South relations because it introduced popular sovereignty, which further divided the nation on the topic of slavery, provoked physical violence in the new territory and drastically accelerated the start of the American Civil war.

Firstly, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 established popular sovereignty which allowed the states to choose whether they were free or slave-holding (Doc 3). This led to a period of time known as Bleeding Kansas when tensions between antislavery Republicans and pro-slavery Democrats increased as border ruffians tipped the votes and violence ensued. Also, the Caning of Charles Sumner, when Northern Congressman Sumner was beat by Southern Congressman Preston Brooks, further intensified tensions (Doc 4). The event led Northerners to view Southerners as uncivilized and violent, further increasing the gap between the North and the South. Thirdly, the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision ruled that slaves were not citizens and it allowed slavery virtually everywhere (Doc 5). This angered Northerners extremely because slavery was banned in the North and most Northerners supported antislavery. It also effectively repealed the Kansas-Nebraska Act that allowed states to choose being slave-holding or free, further angering the North. Altogether these events were the reason sectionalism became such a large issue; they significantly increased mutual dislike between the North and the South and fragmented the

In May of 1854 the Kansas-Nebraska act bill was passed by the U.S Congress. The bill was introduced by Senator Stephen A. Douglas (Discovering our Past; The History of the United States Early Years p.431 and 432). The bill gives the people of Kansas and Nebraska territory popular sovereignty. Popular sovereignty is letting the people of the Kansas and Nebraska territory choose whether to allow slavery or not. The textbook(Discovering our Past; The History of the United States Early Years p. 432) states that “Douglas hoped to make his plans acceptable to both the North and South. He propose repealing the Missouri Compromise and letting the voters in each territory vote on whether or not to allow slavery” (notes) Kansas with slavery would

America has had a bloody rise to the great nation it is today, and that continuous battle has forged it into a strong nation that has been a shining star for many years. The greatest war in American history was, without a doubt, the Civil War. It cost more than 600,000 lives on both sides, ultimately spilling American blood no matter who won how many battles. But before all of this, another fight was carrying on. It was fought for nearly identical reasons, only on a smaller scale. The Bleeding Kansas was a fight over the decision to make Kansas a slave state or a free state. It was brought about by the Nebraska-Kansas Act, put forth by Senator Stephan A. Douglas. The decision to leave the choice up to popular sovereignty led to the early clashes

Many Northerners were infuriated when Congress eliminated the Missouri Compromise and passed on the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The act allowed each territory to settle the issue of slavery based on popular sovereignty (The Kansas-Nebraska). In other words, people were allowed to decide for themselves to determine what was best for their state. By repealing the Missouri Compromise, the North fear that it will enable slavery into areas that have been free for years. However, once Congress passed the law, numerous of pro-slavery and antislavery groups began rushing into Kansas(Chapter 15, 443). Their primary goal was to get in as many votes as possible which will determine if Kansas legislature support or ban slavery. In the final results, Kansas laws

The Kansas-Nebraska act of 1854 allowed for Kansas to decide whether it should be a slave state or not. This would be determined by popular sovereignty, meaning that the majority on one particular side would be the ultimate decision. This caused an influx of people into Kansas to try and sway the decision of the state. There were both proslavery and antislavery citizens going to Kansas.

When a new state was created, there was always the question of "will it be a free or slave state?". This simple question often caused problems, for the north wanted the state to be free, while the south wanted it to be a slave state. The south wanted to be able to have more land to grow crops and make money. This was strange, for southern slave owners often wanted to stick together and not move around. Nevertheless, there was conflict. For example, the Kansas-Nebraska Act was a major cause of violence. The law stated that through popular sovereignty, people could either vote for or against slavery in the state. However, people came flooding into the states, hoping to add votes for their sides. The result was a period of violence between the pro-slavery "border ruffians" and anti-slavery "free-staters." This time of violence was known as "Bleeding Kansas" and was clearly a step in the direction of the

The Kansas-Nebraska Act was made by the U.S. Congress on May 30, 1854. This act let Kansas and Nebraska decide if they would slavery in their territory or not. People against and for slavery went to Kansas to change their opinion, to have it their way. People were fighting each other because they were against slavery or for slavery. This territory earned the nickname "Bleeding Kansas" President Franklin Pierce sent troops to stop the violence. After all of this on January 29, 1861 Kansas became part of the Union and became a free

The creator of the act was Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, who wanted to see citizens be able to settle in these territories. Underlying it all, Douglas’s real desire was to build a transcontinental railroad to go through Chicago. Although opposition was intense, The Kansas-Nebraska Act was finally passed by congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed settlers in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide whether slavery would be legal or not within their borders based on popular sovereignty. Territory north of the 36°30' parallel was now open to popular sovereignty as Northern leaders’ moods grew darker than the midnight sky. This sudden change in affairs largely contributed to the humongous political change that was about to happen next.

The books Child of the Dark by Carolina Maria de Jesus and Testimony by Victor Montejo describes the lives of two individuals from different societies. In both of these societies there was much hardship and violence. The two main characters who wrote these books describe life through their point of view and explains the hardship and challenges they had living in a society filled with violence.